Three Illinois men involved in a police chase through two counties Friday are accused of using cloned credit cards to purchase between $1,000 and $10,000 worth of cigarettes at a Kwik Shop in Hiawatha.

Police attempted to stop a vehicle “associated with the fraudulent use of multiple stolen credit card numbers” at 10:08 a.m. Friday, according to a Hiawatha Police Department news release.

Officers blocked the path of the vehicle, but it managed to leave a parking lot, headed south from Blairs Ferry Road NE on Center Point Road.

The Iowa State Patrol used its airplane to keep the vehicle in sight. Law enforcement agencies put down tire deflation devices ahead of the car, but without success.

The vehicle continued south on Interstate 380 and then east on Interstate 80, according to police.

At one point, the vehicle stopped at a convenience store and “quickly switched drivers,” before continuing east on I-80, according to the release.

The vehicle left the interstate at Herbert Hoover Highway and continued northeast, when it appeared to experience mechanical difficulties, slowing to roughly 45 mph. Officers used a tire deflation device to stop the vehicle near West Branch High School.

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“Following an investigation, officers determined (the men) used cloned credit cards to make multiple large credit card purchases from Kwik Shop” at 300 E. Blairs Ferry Rd., according to criminal complaints made public Monday.